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Monday, July 6, 2015

Vatican City, 6 July 2015 (VIS) – At
10 p.m. yesterday, 5 July, Pope Francis arrived in Quito, the capital
of Ecuador, on the first leg of his ninth apostolic trip during which
he will also visit Bolivia and Paraguay.

The Holy Father left Rome by air at 9
a.m; during the long flight he spoke with the journalists who
accompanied him on the aircraft and, as is customary, sent telegrams
to the Heads of State of those countries through whose airspace he
passed.

Upon arrival in Quito, the Pontiff was
received by a group of children dressed in the traditional costumes
of the various Ecuadorian peoples: two of them, a boy and a girl,
offered him a floral tribute. The president, Rafael Correa, then gave
a welcome address in which, in the light of the Encyclical “Laudato
si'”, he mentioned that 20% of the national territory is protected
in 44 nature reserves and parks, and he underlined the diversity of
cultures present in Ecuador, which is home to not only a mestizo
majority but also 14 indigenous nationalities with corresponding
ancestral languages, including two populations who live in the heart
of virgin forest, choosing voluntary isolation. The president also
mentioned various documents constituting the pastoral Magisterium,
with clear reference to the Social Doctrine of the Church, and
concluded amiably: “The Argentines very proudly say 'the Pope is
Argentine', and my dear friend Dilma Rousseff, president of Brazil,
says, 'very well, the Pope is Argentine, but God is Brazilian!'. Of
course the Pope is Argentine, and perhaps God is Brazilian, but one
thing is certain: paradise is Ecuadorian!”.

The Pope expressed his joy and
gratitude for the warm welcome he received, “a sign of the
hospitality which so well defines the people of this noble nation”.

“I thank you, Mr President, for your
words and I appreciate the convergence of what you have said with my
own way of thinking: you have quoted me far too much, thank you!”,
he continued. “I, in turn, express my cordial good wishes for the
exercise of your office: that you may achieve your objectives for the
good of your people. I greet the distinguished government
authorities, my brother bishops, the faithful of the Church in this
country, and all those who today have opened to me their hearts,
their homes, their nation. To all of you, I express my affection and
sincere appreciation”.

“I have visited Ecuador on a number
of occasions for pastoral reasons. Today too I have come as a witness
of God’s mercy and of faith in Jesus Christ. For centuries that
faith has shaped the identity of this people and borne much good
fruit, including the outstanding figures of St. Mariana de Jesus, St.
Miguel Febres, St. Narcisa de Jesus and Blessed Mercedes de Jesus
Molina, beatified in Guayaquil thirty years ago, during the visit of
Pope St. John Paul II. These, and others like them, lived their faith
with intensity and enthusiasm, and by their works of mercy they
contributed in a variety of ways to improving the Ecuadorian society
of their day”.

“In our own time too, we can find in
the Gospel a key to meeting contemporary challenges, respecting
differences, fostering dialogue and full participation, so that the
growth in progress and development already registered will be
strengthened and ensure a better future for everyone, with particular
concern for the most vulnerable of our brothers and sisters who are
the debt still outstanding in Latin America. In these efforts, Mr
President, you can always count on the commitment and cooperation of
the Church to serve the Ecuadorian people who move forward with great
dignity”.

“Dear friends, I begin my visit
filled with excitement and hope for the days ahead. In Ecuador is the
point closest to outer space: it is the Chimborazo, which for that
reason is called the place 'closest to the sun', the moon and the
stars. We Christians identify Christ with the sun, and the moon with
the Church; the moon does not have its own light, indeed if it hides
from the sun it will be enveloped by darkness. The sun is Jesus
Christ and if the Church moves away or hides from him, she will be in
darkness and no longer able to offer witness. May the coming days
make all of us ever more clearly aware of how close is the sun which
'dawns upon us from on high'. May each of us be a true reflection of
his light and his love”.

“From this place, I wish to embrace
all of Ecuador. From the peak of Chimborazo to the Pacific coast;
from the Amazon rainforest to the Galapagos Islands, may you never
lose the ability to thank God for what he has done and is doing for
you. May you never lose the ability to protect what is small and
simple, to care for your children and for your elderly, who are the
living memory of your people, to have confidence in the young, and to
be constantly struck by the nobility of your people and the singular
beauty of your country, which, according to the President, is nothing
short of paradise”.

“May the Sacred Heart of Jesus and
the Immaculate Heart of Mary, to which Ecuador has been consecrated,
grant you every grace and blessing. Thank you”, concluded the Pope.

Following a brief private audience with
President Correa, the Pope travelled by popemobile the forty
kilometres between Mariscal Sucre airport and the centre of Quito,
the best conserved capital of all South America. It was the first,
along with the Polish city of Krakow, to be declared a World Heritage
Site by Unesco in 1978. During his journey the Pope was greeted by
thousands of people who had gathered around Quito to await his
arrival. Upon arrival at the apostolic nunciature, where he was to
dine and rest for a few hours, Francis went out into the street to
greet the faithful, who applauded him. “I come to bless you before
we go to rest, and let the neighbours sleep!” he said, and after
reciting the Lord's Prayer with them, he returned inside the
nunciature.

This afternoon the Pope will transfer
to Guayaquil where he will visit the Shrine of Divine Mercy and
celebrate Holy Mass.

Vatican City, 4 July 2015 (VIS) – At
7 p.m. today, the eve of his departure for Latin America, the Holy
Father went to the Basilica of St. Mary Major to commend his imminent
apostolic trip to Our Lady. He left a floral tribute before the image
of the Virgin, composed of flowers in the colours of the flags of the
three countries he will visit, and spent around twenty minutes in
prayer.

Vatican City, 4 July 2015 (VIS) –
Unity in diversity and ecumenism of prayer, word and blood were the
key themes of the Pope's improvised address to the thousands of
members of the Renewal in the Holy Spirit movement yesterday
afternoon, on the occasion of their 38th National Convocation, held
in Rome from 3-4 July on the theme “Ways of Unity and Peace –
Voices of prayer for the martyrs of today and for a spiritual
ecumenism”. The encounter began at 4 p.m. in St. Peter's Square,
and was attended by Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, prefect of the
Congregation for the Oriental Churches; Cardinal Kurt Koch, president
of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, and Cardinal
Angelo Bagnasco, president of the Italian Episcopal Conference, along
with the Orthodox and Catholic oriental Patriarchs, Anglican and
Lutheran bishops, and Pentecostal pastors.

In his address, the Pope emphasised
that unity does not mean uniformity. It is not a “spherical”
unity in which “every point is equidistant from the centre and
there is no difference between one point and another. The model is
the polyhedron, which reflects the confluence of all the parts that
nonetheless maintain their originality, and these are the charisms,
in unity but also diversity. … The distinction is important because
we are speaking about the work of the Holy Spirit, not our own. Unity
in the diversity of expressions of reality, as many as the Holy
Spirit has wished to inspire”.

Another point the Holy Father
considered very important to clarify related to those who guide.
“There exists a great temptation for leaders to believe themselves
indispensable, step by step to head towards authoritarianism, to
personality cults, and not to allow the communities renewed in the
Holy Spirit to thrive. This temptation renders 'eternal' the position
of those who consider themselves indispensable. … We must be very
clear that only the Holy Spirit is indispensable in the Church and
Jesus is the only Lord. There are no others. … A time limit should
be established for roles in the Church, which are in reality a form
of service. An important service carried out by lay leaders is to
facilitate the growth and the spiritual and pastoral maturity of
those who will take their place at the end of their service. It would
be opportune for all roles of service in the Church to have a time
limit – there are no lifelong leaders in the Church”.

The Holy Father asked the members of
Renewal in the Holy Spirit to share with all in the Church the
baptism they have received. “It is the most important service that
we can give to all in the Church”, he emphasised: “helping the
people of God in their personal encounter with Jesus Christ, Who
transforms us into new men and women, in small groups, humble but
effective, because the Spirit that works within them. Do not focus on
large-scale meetings that often go no further, but instead on the
'artisanal' relationships that derive from witness, in the family, at
work, in social life, in parishes, in prayer groups, with everyone!”.

Another strong sign of the Spirit in
Charismatic Renewal is the search for unity in the Body of Christ.
“You, as Charismatics, have the special grace of praying and
working for Christian unity, so that the current of grace flows
through all Christian Churches. Christian unity is the work of the
Holy Spirit and we must pray together. … We have all received the
same baptism, we all follow Jesus' path. … We have all caused these
divisions throughout history, for different reasons, but not good
ones. But now is the time that the Spirit makes us think that these
divisions are a sort of 'counter-witness', and we must do all we can
to walk side by side: spiritual ecumenism, the ecumenism of prayer”.

There is also another form of unity:
“the unity of the blood of martyrs, that makes us one. There is the
ecumenism of blood. We know that those who kill Christians in hatred
of Jesus Christ, before killing, do not ask: 'But are you a Lutheran,
Orthodox, Evangelical, Baptist, Methodist?' They say, 'You are
Christian', and behead them. … Fifty years ago, Blessed Paul VI,
during the canonisation of the young martyrs of Uganda, referred to
the fact that for the same reason the blood of their Anglican
companion catechists had been shed. They were Christians, they were
martyrs. Forgive me, and do not be scandalised, but they are our
martyrs! Because they gave their lives for Christ, and this is
ecumenism of blood. We must pray in memory of our common martyrs”.

Finally, there is “unity in work with
the poor and the needy, who also need baptism in the Holy Spirit. It
would be good to organise seminars on life in the Spirit, along with
other Christian charismatic entities, for those brothers and sisters
who live on the streets: they too have the Spirit within them that
pushes for someone to throw open the door from outside”.

Before imparting his final blessing,
the Pope invited those present to go forth and preach the good news
of Jesus “to the poor, to the marginalised, the blind, the sick,
the imprisoned, to all men and women. In each one of them there is
the Spirit, Who wants to be helped to throw open the door so as to be
revived. May the Lord accompany you in this mission, always with the
Bible in your hand, always with the Gospel in your pocket, with the
Word of Christ”.

Vatican City, 4 July 2015 (VIS) –
Pope emeritus Benedict XVI today received a Doctorate honoris causa
from the Pontifical University of John Paul II and the Musical
Academy of Krakow, Poland, granted by the rectors of both
institutions and conferred this morning at Castel Gandolfo by
Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, archbishop of Krakow and grand chancellor
of the university dedicated to St. John Paul II.

Benedict XVI received the nomination
with a discourse in which he recalled how St. John Paul II
demonstrated by example that “the joy of great religious music and
the role of popular participation in holy liturgy, the solemn joy and
simplicity of the humble celebration of the faith, go hand in hand”.

“In the Vatican Council II
Constitution on the liturgy it is written very clearly: 'The treasure
of sacred music is to be preserved and fostered with great care'. On
the other hand, the text highlights, as a fundamental liturgical
category, the participatio actuosa of all the faithful in holy
action. But what remained peacefully together in the Constitution has
often subsequently, in the reception of the Council, been in a
relationship of dramatic tension. Significant parts of the liturgical
movement believed that there would be space for the great choral
works and even orchestral masses only in concert halls, not in the
liturgy, in which there would have been space only for the hymns and
common prayer of the faithful. On the other hand, there was dismay at
the cultural impoverishment of the Church that would necessarily have
resulted. How could the two aspects be reconciled? These were the
questions asked by many of the faithful, including simple people, not
only those with a theological education”.

“At this point, perhaps it is correct
to ask the underlying question: what is music? Where does it come
from and where does it lead? I think there are three 'places' from
which music arises. The first wellspring is the experience of love.
When human beings were seized by love, another dimension of being
opened up within them, a new greatness and breadth of reality,
driving them to express themselves in a new way. Poetry, hymn and
music in general were born of the opening up of this new dimension of
life. A second origin of music is the experience of sadness, of being
touched by death, by suffering and by the abysses of existence. In
this case too, in the opposite direction, there open up new
dimensions of life that do not find answers in discourse alone.
Finally, the third origin of music is the encounter with the divine,
which from the beginning is part of what defines the human being. …
It may be said that the quality of music depends on the purity and
the greatness of the encounter with the divine, with the experience
of love and pain. The purer and more authentic the experience, the
purer and greater will be the music that emerges and develops from
it”.

“Certainly, western music goes far
beyond the religious and ecclesial environment. However, it finds its
deepest source in the liturgy in the encounter with God. In Bach, for
whom the glory of God ultimately represents the aim of all music,
this is entirely evident. The great and pure response of western
music developed in the encounter with that God Who, in the liturgy,
made Himself present in us in Jesus Christ. That music, for me, is a
demonstration of the truth of Christianity. Where this form of
response develops, the encounter with the truth, with the true
Creator of the world, takes place. Therefore, the great religious
music is a reality of theological level and lasting meaning for the
faith of all Christianity, even though it is not at all necessary for
it to be performed always and everywhere. On the other hand, it is
also clear that it cannot disappear from the liturgy and its presence
can be an entirely special form of participation in holy celebration
and in the mystery of the faith”.

“If we think of the liturgy
celebrated by St. John Paul II in all continents, we see the full
breadth of the expressive possibilities of faith in the liturgical
event, and we also see how the great music of the western tradition
is not external to the liturgy, but instead originated and grew
within it and in this way continually contributes to its formation.
We do not know the future of our culture and of religious music. But
one thing is clear: where there takes place the encounter with the
living God Who in Christ comes towards us, there too develops the
response, whose beauty comes from the truth itself”, concluded
Benedict XVI.